Home Canning, meats, veggies, soups ?

I recived a gift card as a gift to a home/cooking store. Ive been wanting to do some canning of meats, soups and veggies.

Does anyone do this? What do I need to look for in a pressure canner for what I would like to do?

Any tips would be much appreciated.

Merry Christmas.

O2B does a mean albacore so you may want to hit him up

Not sure where you live, but here in El Dorado county/Placerville area, there are classes you can take;

http://cecentralsierra.ucanr.edu/Master_Food_Preservers/Newsletter_and_Event_Updates/

Just google your town's name and the word canning and you should be able to get your local Master Food Preservers web site. 

A 23 quart canner is a good start.  It is solid and has never done me wrong.  They are $88 on Amazon so don't pay much more then that. I have seen huge mark ups at some stores. 

Then you will buy a few different size jars 12 to a case.  The lids and bands come with it.  So you will not need more until you make a second batch with the same jars.  Then you only need the lids. 

Then buy a small canning kit that has a funnel, tongs to remove jars from hot water and a magnetic stick to remove lids from hot water before placing on jars. 

Grab a Ball canning book.  It give you basics on different methods off canning and processing times along with recipes to try. 

Then you are off and running.  You can always add stuff later when you get hooked. 

We are going to invest in a super large pot which will triple the amount of jars we can process at one time.  It will be like $500 so you better be into it before going that route.  It took us years to get to that point but some meats have to be processed for 100 minutes and with multiple batches you will be there all night.  Start with small batches and ask questions if you get overwhelmed.

Good luck.

great thread..we just bought an electric smoker and are just starting to use it---my garden and soups had me thinking about canning...now this next on my list

thanks for posting

my buddy jarred some tuna he caught and gave it to us..it was the best tuna I had ever eaten

I've got an 8 gallon canning kettle you can borrow if you want. However, it's not a pressure cooker.my pressure cooker got converted to a still years ago.[emoji33]

Great info, thank you. My gift card has $200, so it sounds like we can get a small kit.

DG, Do you have a lot of experience canning meats? I was wondering about smoked salmon/trout?

Also lentil soup with ham, stuff like that, its all pretty much possible right?




Ill also look up some classes.

Thanks for the offer on the loan.

Most soups are possible except dairy based ones. Never canned smoked meats but have froze after smoking.  Some things can be preserved based on a proper PH with regards to acid and vinegar so use known recipes for awhile.  We screwed up some homemade salsa and it took us awhile to get back into trying it again after it all went bad.

As for the tuna.  The best ever.  Will never go back to store bought.  All you need for tuna is a little olive oil and salt if you want it.  We have canned with just the fish and the water and oil in the fish will work.  We just like the way the oil keeps it so moist.   

How did the salsa go bad?

Id love to try the tuna, but i need the tuna!

A guy at Albion, gave my mom and I a jar he canned himself, it was amazing!

How did the salsa go bad?

We canned a family recipe, but did not make sure the acid level was right.  Most canned salsa have a vinegar or lemon juice added to increase acid level. If not right it will not kill botulism which needs to be killed by acid levels.  The normal canning process kills other growth and removes the air so bad things can't grow.

Id love to try the tuna, but i need the tuna!

A guy at Albion, gave my mom and I a jar he canned himself, it was amazing!

I buy off the dock when the boats are in town.  If you buy flash frozen defrosted from the store in 1/4 steaks you can do it and the flavor will be the same.  It will just cost more than from the docks. 

Can salsa be made in the pressure canner? Or would the heat destroy it?

Can salsa be made in the pressure canner? Or would the heat destroy it?

You use the water bath method. Really just a big pot without the gage and pressure.  I do think it would cook the salsa that's why you need to have ph right and do it in hot water. I  have several pots I use for salsa and jams but also use the canning pot just don't latch the lid down.

He's the thread earlier in the year when I canned tuna.

http://norcalkayakanglers.com/index.php?topic=58943

thx!